Popular Culture Review Vol. 5, No. 1, February 1994 | Page 139

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Updates on the sale of products are also given throughout the
show. The host always reviews the original quantity of the products,
how naany have been purchased and when the product sells out. Often
a viewer will hear such statements as: "If you are interested in the
Dicken's Christmas Village there are only 10 of those left. So if you
want one, please call in soon or they will be sold out.” On the
television screen a box appears in the lower right side announcing the
time left to talk about the product while a box in the upper right
screen indicates the quantity sold. The swiftness with which the
products sells is inferr^ to be an indication of quality, px>pularity and
price.
Audience Response
Convenience, the need for social contact, the
avoidance of loneliness, listening and safely
connecting with others-these are understandable
motives for participating in electronic home
shopping. The strategy is to tap the myth of oldfashioned idealized store, where customer and
salesperson were united in formal courtship, where
greetings, awareness of product, and the illusion of
friendship were part of the exchange of goods.
(Gump)ert & Drucker, 1992, p. 193)
QVC attempts to build long-term, binding relationships between
on-air hosts and the audience (Mohan, 1992). This sense of intimacy
and trust is reflected in the response of audience nnembers to the on-air
hosts as well as the products they have purchased. For example:
Jackie from Orlando, Florida: "1 ordered one of these
for my husband when they first came out and I'm so
glad you've got all these beautiful designs."
Peggy from Cincinnati, Ohio: "I priced these ties
elsewhere, and these prices are out of sight! These
silk ties are a great value."